A drug dealing operation in lower Luzerne County was busted last month by authorities in Hazleton, resulting in the arrest of one of the suspected dealers, while police are looking for his accomplice.

City police reported the arrest of Cristian Perez Abreu, who they said operated an illegal narcotics distribution from his home on Emerald Court, Hazle Township.

Taken into custody at 6:01 a.m. May 22, Perez Abreu is charged with three felony counts of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. The accomplice, Adrian Valerio, remains at large, police said.

Authorities said Perez Abreu was apprehended by members of the Hazleton Police Department’s Special Response Team during the execution of a search warrant at the residence.

The search warrant was a result of a two-month-long investigation conducted by the department’s Narcotics Unit, as part of the Luzerne County Drug Task Force, supported by the Drug Enforcement Agency and the West Hazleton Police Department.

Police said that during their investigation, narcotics detectives, who identified Valerio as a co-conspirator to Perez Abreau’s illegal narcotics distribution, conducted several surveillance details and controlled purchases of fentanyl from Perez Abreu’s residence. After evidence was gathered and probable cause established, the detectives applied for a search warrant, which was approved by the Luzerne County District Attorney’s Office and signed by a magisterial district judge.

Police said the search of the residence resulted in them seizing approximately 8,850 glassine packets of fentanyl, 87 grams of methamphetamine, 72 grams of cocaine and $11,909 of U.S. currency.

Perez Abreu was arraigned before an on-duty magistrate who ordered him committed to the Luzerne County Correctional Facility, Wilkes-Barre, in lieu of $50,000 cash bail pending a preliminary hearing.

Police said they are still actively attempting to locate Valerio, who is wanted on four felony charges of possession with intent to deliver a controlled substance. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is asked to contact the Hazleton Police Department through Luzerne County Dispatch by dialing 9-1-1. All tips regarding Valerio will remain confidential, police said.